


And Your Dad, Too

by vala (valinorean)



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Best Friends, Cross-Generation Relationship, Friends to Lovers, Implied Relationships, Multi, Threesome - F/M/M, flangst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-05-18
Updated: 2011-05-18
Packaged: 2017-10-23 06:07:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/247054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/valinorean/pseuds/vala
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a story about two best friends who share everything. But when they take a trip around town with a beautiful girl, secrets are spilled, bonds are tested, and they learn something about themselves that they never expected. Will their friendship survive?</p>
            </blockquote>





	And Your Dad, Too

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Y Tu Mama Tambien](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/4268) by Alfonso Cuaron. 



> Beta: wendypops & drimatova  
> Written for the Next Gen Fest 2011

Scorpius slowly ran his hand up and down his shaft, savouring the slow build-up of pleasure. He stroked languidly while deciding on which wank fantasy he'd indulge in this time. He propped his head on his pillows to get comfortable and began to visualize.

"Quidditch," he said. He began to lengthen his strokes as his cock grew to full hardness. "That Hufflepuff Seeker, Tracie Harper. Long legs and fine, round arse." He hummed approvingly, letting the image in his mind blend with the sensation from his hand.

Scorpius continued palming his shaft, teasing the slit to spread pre-come across his length. He let his mind wander to images of tight Quidditch leather trousers, firm arses riding sturdy brooms, and lithe bodies built only for a Seeker.

"How about Verna Quinn? Pretty eyes, nice curvy body," a voice called out.

Across the room in his own bed, lying in a similar position to Scorpius, Albus was indulging in his own fantasies. The slick slapping sounds in the room were faintly audible and interspersed with ragged breaths and low moans.

Scorpius tried to imagine the Slytherin Keeper and wrinkled his nose at the thought. She wasn't exactly bad looking, but Scorpius knew her too well to be wanking to thoughts of her.

"I like the green uniform, but I don't think I can wank over a teammate."

"Mm, you're right. How about that retired Quidditch star. Remember Katie Bell?"

"Oh, yeah. Good one."

Albus sped up his pace, moaning low as he tried to remember the last spread of Katie Bell in _Quaffle Play_ , a magazine featuring scantily clad female Quidditch players. She was as close to a Quidditch goddess as one can get, except for one small detail, and Albus adjusted the image in his head accordingly.

"I just wish her tits weren't that big," Albus voiced his opinion about the former Harpies Chaser. "Her arse is perfect, though."

"You have a fascination with arses," Scorpius chuckled from across the room.

"So do you," Albus retorted back.

"Mm, that I do."

They were quiet after that, just enjoying the pleasures of uninterrupted wank time. As with any boys' dormitories, having privacy was such a rare privilege—not that they have any issues with being seen by their roommates. After seven years of rooming together, they had all seen each other wank at one time or another. Any issues they had regarding shyness had long since disappeared once they began to experiment with wanking in second year, and began collecting and sharing magazines in fifth year. No, the problem was hearing about some of their roommates' wank fantasies would more often times turn them off rather than arouse them. Because, come on, who'd want to wank to thoughts of their graying professors getting it on? It was really lucky that the two best friends had similar tastes.

Just then, one of their roommates poked his head in.

"Oi, wankers! Finish that up already, the alcohol just arrived!"

It was their last day at Hogwarts and they would all be going home tomorrow. Slytherin House was throwing a party for the seventh years as congratulations, and the sixth years were rejoicing in the fact that they would be able to rule the school next year.

The two ignored the intruder, intent on their own pleasures.

"I'll give you two something to wank on," their classmate grinned. "Headmistress Vector. And her wrinkly tits."

"Aww, Don that's disgusting!" A pillow from Albus's side of the room came hurtling towards the door. Don quickly ducked out and his laughter could be heard as he walked back to the common room.

Albus flopped back on the bed, his erection well on its way to wilting. Sometimes, their classmates could be such a pain.

"Hey Scorp, I'm knackered," Albus called out. "You gonna finish?"

"Fuck it, I want to finish," came the ragged reply from the other side of the room.

"Yeah, well hurry up."

Albus got up to dress and spelled himself clean. He heard the frantic slapping and a mumbled _Come on, come on_ from the other side of the room. Scorpius's hitched breath followed by a low groan signalled that his best friend was done wanking. A few minutes later, a clean but slightly dishevelled Scorpius joined him near the door to head up to the common room.

"So," Albus said casually, a smirk forming on the corner of his lips. "Vector's wrinkly tits, huh?"

Albus didn't bother to fend him off as Scorpius shot him a horrified look and shoved the laughing boy into the wall.

-:-

  
The party was in full swing. Every sixth and seventh year Slytherin was gathered in the common room, talking, dancing, and for the most part, drinking. A few students from other houses had also sneaked into their common room, just as a few of their own had sneaked into the common rooms of other Houses to be with their girlfriends or boyfriends.

"Hey, Al." Scorpius sat on the arm of Albus's armchair and plucked the firewhiskey from his best friend's hand. He downed it in one go before returning the now empty glass to a frowning Albus. "That Ravenclaw has been making doe eyes at you all night. Think she'll be an easy one?" He wagged his eyebrows for emphasis.

Scorpius had always been the crude and vulgar one between them. He'd always have a lascivious comment or two about a certain someone, or would be off daring his friends to go after a certain classmate just for the heck of it. But for all his lewd behaviour, he was actually quite a gentleman and had never kissed and told. Scorpius had quite the reputation of having been with most of the girls in school, but even Albus wasn't sure if half of them were true. He himself wasn't a slouch in that department but he knew for a fact that Scorpius had been getting more.

Albus forgot all about being annoyed and instead leaned forward to peek around Scorpius who had been obstructing his view of the said Ravenclaw. Albus snorted when he saw whom his friend was referring to. The girl looked nice enough, but not at all his type. She was too curvy and wore too much make up for his taste. He rather liked slim and slender girls who weren't too conscious of their looks. And blondes, he added. He was definitely into blondes, and this one was a brunette.

"Nah, not my type. You can have her," he told Scorpius. He motioned to the other side of the room to the lone Gryffindor who had braved the Den of the Snakes. "That though, I wouldn't mind going after."

"Hmm, that one, eh? You know if I grew my hair long and shaved my legs I could pass off as her twin sister." It wasn't necessarily true, but it had been a running joke ever since they had learned of Albus's penchant for blondes. Scorpius laughed and allowed himself to slip from the chair's arm and fall gracelessly onto Albus's lap. He latched onto Albus's neck, made kissy faces and said in a high pitched voice, "Oh Albus, darling, take me away before these wicked Slytherins taint my Gryffindor purity!"

Albus laughed and unceremoniously dumped his best friend on the floor. "You're such a retard, Scorp."

"Yeah, well you are who your friends are, so that makes you a retard as well." He yanked Albus's arm and the other boy, more than slightly drunk from drinking firewhiskey all night, toppled to the floor as well. Scorpius scrambled up to claim the now empty armchair and summoned two new glasses of firewhiskey.

"To retarded friends and getting laid!" Scorpius drunkenly shouted to the room at large while raising his own glass and handing the other to Albus.

The rest of the common room cheered in agreement.

-:-

  
It was well past midnight before the party began to wind down until only a handful of seventh year Slytherins remained. Scorpius was plastered on Albus's shoulder and was snoring lightly. Albus himself was trying not to fall asleep on the common room, but couldn't muster enough energy to head back to their dorm room.

Albus listened to his classmates as they discuss what their plans were after graduation. And as Albus succumbed to sleep, he heard one of his friends announce that he would be traveling the world for a year.  
 _  
Travel._

 _See the world._

Those were the last two thoughts in Albus's mind as sleep overtook him.

-:-

  
"Train leaves in two hours!" Don announced. "Get up you lazy slobs!"

Scorpius raised his head slightly and opened one bleary eye to glare at their classmate. He winced as his head exploded in pain far worse than any Bludger could cause. He made quiet shushing sounds and waved his hand delicately to shoo Don before letting his head fall back on the sofa's arm. On the other end of the sofa, Albus stirred and groaned, obviously feeling as hung over as Scorpius.

"Oh no, you don't. I'm not Prefect for nothing, you know. And I still am until we get to the station." Don grabbed an arm each and hauled the two boys up to a sitting position, nearly knocking their heads together. He ignored the expletives sent his way and pressed a hangover potion and a headache potion into each of their hands. "You two better hurry up if you want to get a decent shower. Madsen is determined to use up all of the hot water."

Don watched them down the potions first before nodding his approval and heading back to the dorms to pack his trunk.

"Fuck, that was nasty," Albus commented.

"The potions or last night's party?" Scorpius asked.

"Both."

In silent agreement, they both headed down to the showers to start preparing to go home. Their parents would be waiting for them at Platform 9 3/4 and it wouldn't do either of them any good to be caught with a hangover.

When they walked into the shower room, their classmate Madsen was just getting ready to leave.

"Well boys, no wanking in the showers for you," he said. "All you get is cold water." He gave them a friendly slap each on the shoulder and headed back to the dorms.

Scorpius snorted before stripping down and stepping into the nearest shower. He heard the rustling of cloth as Albus striped and folded his own robes neatly. Scorpius knew his robes would be folded as well. It was an Albus thing, robe folding.

Albus stepped into the shower beside him and started humming under his breath. Another Albus thing, that. Scorpius briefly wondered just how many of his best friend's quirks he knew and if he'd miss them once they leave Hogwarts for good. Which was to say, after today.

"Hey Scorp, I was thinking," Albus began.

Scorpius snapped out of his reverie and answered automatically, "Well, don't hurt yourself too much." He mentally noted it as _their_ thing.

Albus ignored his jibe and continued, "You know, some of the other seventh years are planning on doing some travelling after graduation. I was thinking I'd like to do something similar as well."

"You mean like going around the world, seeing places. That kind of thing?"

Albus stuck out his open palm and Scorpius handed him the soap.

"Not really. I was thinking more like going to places and doing things only crazy teenage wizards can get away with."

Scorpius washed the soap from his face and stuck out his hand in Albus's direction. A vial of shampoo was handed to him.

"You mean like going to clubs, attending crazy parties, then waking up in a shady bed and breakfast and realizing you've bonded to a random witch?"

Albus laughed. "Yeah, except for the last part."

"Sounds fun," Scorpius said nonchalantly.

"Yeah, well. It's just an idea," Albus replied, sounding the tiniest bit deflated.

Scorpius snorted, knowing full well what the tone of voice meant. "I could go with you."

"You would? Really?" Albus turned to him, eyes bright with hope.

"Sure," Scorpius replied. "Dad knows a lot of people, I'm sure I can get access to one or two that are more discreet than the ones in London, but the parties are just as wild."

"Oh, thank you! Thank you, Scorpy!" Scorpius smiled affectionately at the endearment. It was one that his best friend only used when he was extremely ecstatic—or possibly delirious with fever. It was apparently the former because just then Albus launched himself on Scorpius and planted a big wet kiss on his cheek and said, "You're the best Scorpy!"

"Oi, watch it!" Scorpius said as he pushed the excited boy away, not unkindly. "No kissing in the shower, you wanker, or people will think we're a couple of poofs."

Albus only laughed and swatted his friend's arse with his wet flannel for good measure.

-:-

  
Family dinners at the Burrow were nothing short of massive and the graduation celebration was no exception, especially with two graduates this year: Albus and Rose. The entire Weasley clan was in attendance with the exception of Bill, who was still in Egypt on an extended curse breaking project for a recently discovered Pharaoh's tomb.

With two dozen Weasleys (and Potters, of course) cramped inside the Burrow, Albus found himself dragging Rose out to the garden for some peace and quiet. Rose had always been his favourite cousin. Mostly because they were both the same age, but it didn't hurt that she also sorted into Ravenclaw unlike his Gryffindor siblings.

"So, you know about the trip I was planning with Scorp? I was thinking maybe you'd want to come with us."

Rose raised one eyebrow. "What's the catch, Al?"

"No catch!" Albus said a little too quickly to be believable. "I just thought you might want to come along since you haven't decided on what you want to do yet. We'll only be gone two weeks at most."

Rose just kept eyeing him suspiciously.

"Oh all right!" Albus scowled at his cousin. He hated it when she can see right through him. "Scorp and I thought you'd be able to help us navigate the Muggle towns since you have more experience with that whenever you visit your other grandparents. You could help us with Muggle hotels and money, stuff like that."

"But I thought you and Scorpius are planning on hitting clubs and parties?"

"Shh! Not too loud!" Albus waved his hand to shush her. "We are, but in some of the Muggle places as well. I told Mum and Dad that Scorp and I will be 'going Muggle' for two weeks, just for experience."

"Ah, and you want me as cover for that part of the story," she nodded empathically.

"Well, that and you make the best hangover potions," Albus muttered sheepishly.

"Hmm, I suppose it wouldn't be that bad. I've never done this before," Rose mused. "And Hugo says I'm going to end up exactly like Uncle Percy if I don't let loose a little," she scowled. "I happen to think Uncle Percy is highly respectable."

Albus rolled his eyes good-naturedly at her. It was one of the few things they could never agree upon and he never lets her forget it.

"I assure you you'll have fun. I'll let you drink your first Ogden's — you haven't tasted that yet, have you? — and Scorp said he knows one or two places we can have tons of fun, and then there's that...place..." the enthusiastic babble died from Albus's lips as his eyes strayed beyond the gate, appearing mesmerized.

Walking up to the Burrow was a woman of exceptional and alluring beauty, yet Albus could not put his finger on why that was. She had silvery blonde hair, blue eyes and willowy body, yet those would have only made her look like a normal pretty girl, not exceptional. The silvery glow that surrounded her, however, made her look ethereal. It seemed as if she was a—

"Veela," Rose snapped her fingers under Albus's nose, releasing him from his trance-like state.

"Huh?" was the only comprehensible word that Albus could form.

"Part-veela, actually. That's Aunt Fleur's sister, don't you remember her?" She gestured to the woman who was now approaching them.

"Who?" His faculties had apparently taken leave.

"Oh, honestly!" Rose said the word with alarming similarity to her mother while she rolled her eyes impatiently. "Gabrielle Delacour? Aunt Fleur's sister? They're both quarter veela so it's only natural for you to have that reaction. She's coming over so please don't embarrass me, Al."

She gave him a little shake and that seemed to clear him up a bit as the woman walked— _glided_ —up to the two cousins.

"Hello," the veela greeted them.

Rose gave a small smile. "Hello, Miss Delacour."

The woman gave a soft melodious laugh. "It's actually Whitby now, but please call me Gabrielle. Rose Weasley, I presume?" She leaned down and pressed her cheek against Rose's before turning to Albus. "And this young man, I don't even need to ask. Albus Potter, no? You look exactly like your father when he was young."

Albus refused to open his mouth on the grounds that he might degenerate into incoherent babble if he did. Luckily, he was saved by Fleur rushing out of the house.

"Gabrielle?" The two sisters ran towards each other and hugged, descending into rapid French while Fleur led Gabrielle inside the house.

Albus stared after the two, half in awe. He never usually thought of Fleur as part magical creature; he was much too used to her unusual looks. But Gabrielle, on the other hand, made him realize that these creatures of ethereal beauty were actually real. He remembered his dad used to tell him about the veela women the Bulgarian National Quidditch team brought as mascots for the '94 World Cup. That must have been a sight to behold!

"You know, she doesn't have any accent. At least not like Aunt Fleur," Albus mused, only realizing this fact belatedly.

"Are you really part of this family?" Rose was looking at him incredulously. "How come you don't know any of the gossips? What kind of Slytherin are you?"

"What gossip? And for your information, only girls are interested in such things," Albus said, making a face.

"I'll have you know, I heard it from James."

"Well, he's a prat. And a Gryffindor to boot. So of course he would know all the family gossip." Albus waved his hand dismissively, a habit he acquired from his best friend who usually does it when talking about Gryffindors and other lowly creatures. When Rose remained quietly amused at his cousin, he prodded her for more details. "So? What _is_ the gossip about Gabrielle?"

"We~ell," Rose leaned in closer and lowered her voice so only Albus could hear. "They say that she was the black sheep of the Delacours. After she graduated from Beauxbatons she came here with a few friends, but she never returned to France after."

"Not ever?" asked Albus.

"Nope," Rose said, popping her lips at the P. "And she only visits Aunt Fleur once every year, if at all."

"Hm."

Albus looked pensively toward the house, idly wondering what happened that made Gabrielle stay. He and Rose sat quietly, lost in their own thoughts until Rose broke the silence.

"Okay."

Albus looked up at her, confused. "Okay, what?"

"Okay I'm coming with you," she said grinning.

Albus's answering smile was bright as a Lumos. "Really? You're the best Rose!" He threw his arms around her neck and squeezed the air from her lungs.

"That is, if I'm still alive by then." Rose gave fake choking sounds and laughingly pushed Albus away.

-:-

  
A week later Albus was back at the Burrow to meet up with Rose and Scorpius before they head off for their trip, or The Great Muggle Adventure as the rest of their family had dubbed it. However, when he arrived there, he was greeted by a very sick and very green Rose who was staying over at the Burrow (as they all usually did whenever one of them gets sick; Grandma Molly would not have it any other way). Her face was covered with pockmarks and sparks kept shooting out from her nose whenever she sneezed.

"I'm sorry, Al," Rose said while wiping her nose with a tissue. She sneezed once more and the tissue caught fire, effectively incinerating it. Rose sighed and threw up her hands in defeat. "It's not as if I _wanted_ to catch Dragonpox, you know. But Louis had it and I was keeping him company last weekend."

Albus let his head fall on the foot of her bed wretchedly. All their plans were ruined! They wouldn't have anyone to help them with public transportation, with exchanging Muggle currency, not to mention who would stay sober enough to drag their collective arses away from tattoo parlours and Vegas style bondings?

"You two can still go through with it, just the two of you," Rose said trying to placate Albus. "It was how you originally planned it anyway."

"But it wouldn't be the same," Albus whined.

Just then they heard a commotion downstairs. They could hear Fleur's usually lilting voice rise in agitation. Another voice replied, grave and hushed. They both realized that the conversation was in French, and that could only mean one thing. They both looked at each other, Rose raising her eyebrows in question and Albus shrugging in reply, not in the least bit interested at the family gossip-in-the-making downstairs. He was still feeling glum that Rose wasn't coming with them.

Rose patted Albus's arm sympathetically. "Don't worry, you'll still have fun."

"I better head down," Albus said dejectedly. "Scorp will be arriving any minute. And I don't think he'd want to be in the middle of whatever is happening down there."

Albus trudged down to the wait for Scorpius by the Floo. It was at that point that Ginny Weasley (formerly Potter) came into the sitting room to fuss over her son—and apparently gossip over what was happening in the kitchen.

"Did you hear what that was about?" Ginny whispered low to her son and beckoned him nearer.

Albus could only shake his head at the way his mum was acting like a gossipy teenager. Actually, she'd been like that ever since she and his dad had gotten a divorce last year.

The years prior to their divorce were some of the worst times of Albus's adolescence. The polite indifference and the lack of warmth from their parents trying to stay together for the sake of their children had put too much strain on the entire family. Of course, none of the children want to see their parents separate, but the visible uplift in everyone's spirit in the weeks immediately following the divorce more than made them forgive their parents.

In fact, it wasn't only his mum that had been acting like she was twenty years younger. Albus was all but ashamed that his dad had started acting like a promiscuous teenager, especially since three months ago when he and Scorpius's father had gotten together. He cringed inwardly and immediately banished the thoughts from his head before anything unpleasant could form.

"Seriously Mum? Aren't you a little too old for that?" Albus admonished his mother.

"Oh, Al. Live a little," Ginny said, ruffling her younger son's hair before launching into the latest family gossip in hushed tones. "So, I don't understand most of what Fleur and Gabrielle were talking about, but your Aunt Hermione says that Gabrielle just left her husband!"

"And that's our business because…?" Albus asked sceptically.

"Well, Gabrielle wanted to stay with her sister for a while but since Louis is sick, they won't be able to return to Shell Cottage."

"Why can't she just stay there until Fleur returns?"

"Oh, Al. You don't understand, she needs Fleur. Don't you remember how I used to come home before your Dad and I got divorced?"

"Ah," was all Albus could say because really, how do you react to something like that?

The awkward moment was mercifully interrupted by the roaring of the Floo. Albus quickly rushed to Scorpius's side as his best friend stepped out of the fireplace.

"Hey," Albus said while taking Scorpius's rucksack and dumping it on the floor next to his. "Rose won't be coming with us, she has Dragonpox."

Scorpius narrowed his eyes in concern. "You know, my great-grandfather died of Dragonpox," he said pensively. "At least she caught it early so it won't be as bad for her."

"Hello Scorpius," Ginny greeted, approaching the two boys. "Isn't Harry coming here to see you boys off?"

Both Albus and Scorpius snorted in unison. "With Scorp out of the house, Dad probably won't leave the Manor for a fortnight," Albus retorted.

"Here," Scorpius said, throwing a pouch filled with coins in Albus's direction. "Your dad asked me to give you this. He says you should know how to exchange them by now." Albus opened the pouch and found it filled with galleons. "Guess that's how much your dad loves you, can't wait to get you out of his hair."

He ruffled Albus's already messy hair and the other retaliated with mock punches. Ginny only rolled her eyes at their childish antics. They were warming up to a mock kung-fu fight when Gabrielle walked out of the kitchen followed closely by Molly and Fleur.

"Really Molly, you don't need to," Gabrielle was saying to a concerned looking Molly Weasley. Her motherly instincts had apparently taken over once again. "I really am fine, I could return some other time when you are not so busy with the children."

"But darling, you are not in ze way. We 'ave plenty of room for you 'ere," Fleur tried to convince her.

Albus was once again hit with that stunned awe that he felt when he first saw Gabrielle, which he now attributes to the veela allure. It wasn't as bad as when he first saw her, but he could feel still feel himself being drawn towards Gabrielle. His mum had told him after his graduation party a few weeks ago about how his dad reacted to the veela in the 1994 World Cup. Embarrassing was too mild a word for it apparently, and he would've blamed that dastard Potter gene if he could form half a coherent thought.

"Delacour?" Sorpius whispered to Albus in a half-awed half-amused manner.

Albus blinked, coming out of his trance-like state. "You know her?"

"The Wayward Delacour, the one who left France and never returned. It's well known in pureblood gossip."

Just then the two sisters slowly turned to them almost eerily, as if hearing their conversation.

"'e iz a Malfoy," Fleur said by way of explanation. Albus was almost sure it was the veela blood that gave them supernatural hearing abilities.

"Ah, of course, you would know of such things," Gabrielle said to Scorpius, though not unkindly.

Scorpius cleared his throat and affected the proper posture to mask his embarrassment at being caught. "Actually, it was my mother who told me that. She was a Greengrass."

Gabrielle's eyes flashed in recognition at the name. "A Greengrass? I see." Both Albus and Scorpius fidget under her scrutiny. "Ah, but I must go now," Gabrielle said, finally releasing the two boys from her piercing gaze.

"But you don't 'ave to go, Gabrielle. Zere iz a place for you 'ere." Fleur said kindly.

"I'll be fine. Don't worry about me," Gabrielle said, kissing her sister's cheek. With that, she stepped out of the house and began to walk to the outer gate to Apparate.

Albus watched her go, wondering when he would see her next. When everyone else had retreated back to the kitchen, Albus felt an elbow dig at his side, and a whispered "wait here" and Scorpius was running out to catch Gabrielle. He watched from the window as Scorpius called out just before she reached the outer gate. They exchanged what seemed like a quick conversation before Scorpius was jogging back to the house with a grin on his face.

"What was that about, Scorp?" Albus asked as Scorpius walked into the house.

Scorpius looked around as if to check if anyone was listening before giving Albus a mischievous grin and said, "I asked her to come with us."

"What?! Come with us?!" Albus squeaked. "Did you tell her what we're really going to do? And not what everyone else thinks we're doing?"

"Of course," Scorpius said. "Relax Al, it'll be great. Besides, isn't she your type, too?" He gave his best friend a wink and Albus immediately knew why he invited her.

"Scorp!" Albus cried scandalously. "Is that all you ever think about?"

"Trust me, I know what I'm doing," Scorpius said, waving off Albus's protests.

Albus looked half horrified at the thought. Gabrielle was practically _family_ and Albus didn't even think about her _that way_. Well, at least not until Scorpius mentioned it. And that time when he first saw her walking to the Burrow doesn't count either. He didn't know who she was then.

Albus shook his head to try and clear his thoughts, but the seed had already been planted in his mind. Besides, they're not _technically_ related to each other, right?

He didn't know why Scorpius had suddenly extended the invitation to Gabrielle without asking him first and he was certain Scorpius didn't know what he was getting himself into, not with the whole family drama anyway. But when Scorpius winked conspiratorially at him, he thought that maybe, just maybe, Scorpius knew what he was doing after all. Albus idly wondered what exactly Scorpius knew about Gabrielle.

-:-

  
It was late afternoon when Albus and Scorpius reached the Leakey Cauldron. Scorpius had arranged for them to meet Gabrielle there, but it was already half an hour past their appointed meeting time and she was still nowhere to be seen.

"Are you sure she's coming?" Albus asked for the fifth time that afternoon.

"I already told you, I'm not sure if she's coming alright?" Scorpius said, half annoyed at Albus's nagging. "I only told her we'd be here if she wants to come with us."

They waited half an hour more for lack of anything to do and just as when they were about to leave, they saw Gabrielle enter the pub. The two boys exchanged grins before waving her over to their table. Albus noticed immediately that something was off about Gabrielle. Her hair was less shiny, her eyes were red rimmed, and the ethereal glow that usually enhanced her beauty was dull and barely noticeable. When she reached their table, she gave them both a smile that did not reach her eyes.

"Hello boys," Gabrielle said. "Have you been waiting long?"

"Not at all," Scorpius said smoothly. "In fact we just got here ourselves."

Albus felt a finger poking his side. "Yeah," Albus mumbled, looking flustered. "Just got here."

"Glad you could make it, though," Scorpius said conversationally. "I thought you wouldn't come."

"I nearly wasn't able to," Gabrielle said, her eyes darkening, but it was gone so fast it was as if it hadn't been there at all. "But we're here to have fun, yes? How about I order us a round of drinks to celebrate?" She raised her hand to signal a waitress before ordering something alcoholic that neither of the two boys had heard of before.

The two looked at each other and shrugged amusedly. It seemed that inviting Gabrielle was a great idea after all, and they told her so.

"I know all about these post-graduation trips. I was as young as you two once, you know."

"Of course you'd know all about it," Scorpius said under his breath so that only Albus could hear. But Gabrielle grinned at him as if she heard him all the same.

"So, Greengrass, eh?" Gabrielle's eyes met Scorpius's and twinkled knowingly. Just then the waitress returned with three glasses of what seemed like a vile-looking mixture with a sickly sweet scent. "Prove it. Drink this."

Scorpius looked suspiciously at the dark liquid and scrunched his nose in disgust. "How would that prove anything?"

Gabrielle leaned forward on the table and looked at the two boys mischievously. "You know why your mother knew about me?"

Scorpius shook his head and both boys leaned in to catch her low response.

"Both Daphne and Astoria were with me at the time." Gabrielle leaned back and watched Scorpius's face turn pale from shock to an embarrassing shade of red.

"But—!" Scorpius sputtered. "But those stories were wild and outrageous!"

"And all of them true, I assure you."

"What stories?" Albus asked wide-eyed.

Gabrielle picked up her glass and raised it in salute. "Drink up boys, and I'll tell you all about it."

For the next two hours Gabrielle regaled them with stories about her own post-graduation trip. It started with a free Portkey to any destination and back, given to one of her classmates as a graduation gift. There were five of them that came to London to 'soak up some culture' as they called it. Along the way, they met the Greengrass sisters. The Greengrasses were quite well-known in pureblood circles. The two sisters, however, were more famous for their 'double antics,' and this Gabrielle said with a wag of her eyebrows. "Oh that's so wrong. Don't give me details about my mother and aunt!" was Scorpius's horrified protest.

When it was time to return to France, Gabrielle had chosen to remain, much to the delight of Daphne and Astoria. They had created quite a reputation, the three of them. And when the Greengrass girls were finally called back home, Gabrielle decided to settle down with one of the blokes she met along the way, Kevin Whitby, a former Hufflepuff.

After Gabrielle finished her tale, they spent the rest of the night half-drunk telling each other stories of lewd conquests and crazy experiences. It may have been the copious amount of alcohol or the presence Gabrielle—someone older who had a lot of experiences to share and not part of the family—that made both Scorpius and Albus comfortable telling stories about their own experiences. It was something they had consciously kept from each, other until now.

They had both come to an agreement long ago that they'd never tell each other who they were messing around with. It didn't feel right for them to fool around with the same girl, but since the school's population wasn't horribly large, the only way to go about that was if they remained ignorant of each other's deeds. Now for the first time, the two boys had laid bare to each other nearly everything they have ever done in Hogwarts, trying to outdo each other by naming all the things they did and with whom they did it with, each story crazier than the next.

It was a few days later when they remembered the night's conversation, that Albus quietly asked Scorpius if everything he had said was true, or if he was just doing it to impress Gabrielle. When Scorpius confirmed it, Albus was surprised when he realized just how well Scorpius had been getting around. It did not sit well with him.

-:-

  
They ended up that night in Brews and Stews, a less than stellar inn at a shady corner of Diagon Alley. All the other decent wizarding inns were packed and Gabrielle refused to stay at a Muggle hotel (In one of her escapades, drunken magic caused mayhem at a Muggle hotel and Obliviators were called in to clean up the mess. That was apparently their last night together before Daphne and Astoria were summoned back home by their very angry parents). Even the dodgy inn was already full when they got there and in the end, Scorpius had to resort to doing something he has never done before: he _bribed_ the owner just to get them a room. And oh wouldn't grandfather be so proud of that.

Scorpius entered the small room and surveyed the area with disdain. The room was bare except for one queen-sized bed pushed against one wall, one standard-sized bed against the other, and a rickety end table in between. A slow dripping sound came from the tiny bathroom in one corner of the room.

"I think we'll be sharing a bed, Al," Scorpius called over his shoulder to where Albus was trailing behind Gabrielle up the stairs.

When they reached the landing, Gabrielle pushed Scorpius out of the doorway, dropped her things carelessly on the floor, and managed to flop gracefully onto the nearest bed— the queen-sized one.

"Um, Gabrielle," Albus said slowly. "Wouldn't it be better if you take the smaller bed so Scorp and I could share the larger one?"

Gabrielle opened one eye and grinned in amusement. "But aren't you dying to share a tiny bed to have an excuse to snuggle?" She laughed in that irritating way that said she was more than just teasing them. She then stretched and tugged the covers over her head, saying "Goodnight boys!"

The two could only stare at her covered form wretchedly. They were too drunk and too tired to argue.

"Well, looks like you and I will be snuggling, Al," Scorpius joked and made kissy faces at his best friend.

"Oh, sod off you," Albus said, pushing Scorpius's face away before heading for the bed. "I'm getting the wall side and you can fall on your arse off the bed."

-:-

  
The next day Albus woke to sharp knees and elbows on his chest. He pushed Scorpius off onto the floor and was rewarded with a yelp and a groan. When he tried to stand up he was immediately assaulted by a blinding pain in his temples. _Gods_ , he thought. This was probably the worst hangover he'd ever had in his life. It was so much worse than the morning after that final party they had in the Slytherin common room.

It was when he was contemplating between Stunning himself back to sleep or running to the loo before he spilled the contents of his stomach onto the floor (and hopefully not hit Scorpius with it) that Gabrielle entered the room looking as fresh and chipper as ever.

"Up you get boys!" Gabrielle called out while pulling open the shades. Bright light streamed inside the room and Albus's headache doubled.

 _Oh god, she's a morning person! An appallingly morning person_ , Albus thought. And here he thought he had escaped that kind of roommate when Rose came down with Dragonpox.

"Oh don't you give me that look, Albus Potter," she said. "It's already past noon and we still have a long way to go before we reach _Double Standards_."

"Reach...what?" Albus asked. He searched his befuddled mind and tried to remember what exactly they agreed to do last night. He groaned as Gabrielle prattled about the new club near Upper Flagley and all the places they were going to hit while Albus tried his best to ignore her. Not that he minded her taking the lead, of course. In fact, he was glad they had someone who seemed to know what they were doing, but he'd rather she not see the horrible morning afters and they should get proper accommodations _before_ getting smashed.

"Scorpius," Albus watched as Gabrielle crouched down to Scorpius, who was curled in a foetal position on the floor. "Time to get up, darling."

Scorpius slowly uncurled from his position, looking a little paler than usual but nonetheless fine. He sat up, not saying anything and just looked dazedly into space. A few seconds later, he sprinted towards the bathroom quick as lightning. The heaving noises were the only sounds in the room.

"Definitely a Greengrass," Gabrielle said, amused.

-:-

  
Five days into their trip and they'd already hit four wizard bars, eight Muggle clubs and three private parties of the dubious sort. Their latest conquest was a mixed Muggle and wizard bar where all wizards were to dress and act like Muggles. With each club they hit, Gabrielle's partying had grown increasingly wilder, pulling all sorts of men and sometimes even women, but never taking them to her room. The worst part was, no matter how much drink she'd had, she never seemed to get more than a little loud and tipsy, whereas Albus and Scorpius always ended up puking their guts out the next morning.

A round of drinks the colour of _Avada Kedavra_ was set down in front of Albus and Scorpius and both looked up to see a leering Gabrielle.

"Drink up, boys. Especially you, Scorpius," she said with a salacious wink. "That's your mum's favourite."

"Mother drank this vile thing?" Scorpius asked, while peering suspiciously at the brew.

"Every night, she did." With that, Gabrielle downed hers in one go.

Albus took an experimental sip and his brow furrowed as the alcohol burned down his throat. He didn't think he could take more than a glass of the thing and decided to switch drinks. Gabrielle, however, kept ordering more for herself. Both Scorpius and Albus looked at each other knowingly; they already knew what kind of night this would turn out to be. A very...enlightening one.

On the first night that Gabrielle drank much more than usual, she told them how she was taught to give a good blowjob. She was taught how to slowly tease and not just swallow eagerly, how to relax enough to breathe around the cock even when it's poking the back of her throat, and how to be in control by pulling away when the man was at the brink of orgasm. But the most important thing she learned, she said, was how to make a man come undone by breaching his hole and locating his spot.

Both Albus and Scorpius looked faintly green thinking about what she just said.

"Isn't that kinda..." Albus started before trailing off.

"Weird?" Scorpius supplied.

"Most men like it," Gabrielle had shrugged before heading to the dance floor and leaving them both to stew over it.

Tonight, however, Gabrielle was in a more sombre mood. It didn't take long before she started revealing personal details about her life. Apparently, she had just learned that her husband had been cheating on her. The minute she learned about it, she immediately left him and sought out her sister at the Burrow, where Scorpius saw her for the first time.

"And you know what the best revenge is?" Gabrielle asked them menacingly while waving her drink in the air. "A drunken shag with a random stranger."

Scorpius snorted into his drink. "Except that you never seem to get drunk enough for a shag."

Gabrielle leaned in close to Scorpius and said something that made him duck his head and blush. Albus eyed them both warily; the thought of Scorpius finally making his move on Gabrielle was in his mind. She then eyed Albus while still talking to Scorpius in low tones. Albus could not understand a word of what she said and it distinctly sounded like French to him. Then Gabrielle was laughing lightly and Scorpius was pushing back his chair.

"I'm going dancing," Scorpius announced before stalking off to the centre of the room without waiting for anyone's reply.

Albus watched with hooded eyes while Scorpius chatted up one of the girls their age. A few seconds later, her arms were around Scorpius's neck and they were grinding uninhibitedly on the dance floor.

"So, Al," Gabrielle said casually. Albus was startled; he didn't even notice her move closer to him. He could feel her breath on his neck as she talked and he was secretly pleased to have Gabrielle all to himself. Maybe Scorpius would see them and get jealous. "How long have you and Scorpius been best friends?"

"Since first year," Albus replied distractedly. He was distracted by the scent of alcohol on Gabrielle's warm breath over his neck. He was distracted when another girl crept up behind Scorpius and started grinding against him from behind.

"And you've been inseparable since?" Gabrielle asked insistently.

"Yeah," Albus answered easily.

"And do you know each other's secrets?"

"Most of them."

"And do you know how many girls he's fucked?"

This time, her voice had dropped so low that Albus almost didn't hear. He wondered where she was heading with these questions.

"Not really…"

"Does he know how many girls you've fucked?"

"Unless you count the ones we told each other several nights ago, no. We don't usually kiss and tell."

"How about the boys he's fucked?"

The question caught him by surprise. "What?! Does he even—"

"How about the boys _you've_ fucked?"

Albus's eyes snapped to Gabrielle, but before he could even utter a word in reply, she was already laughing and walking away from the table. Albus didn't get up from the table for the remainder of the evening. He just sat there repeating Gabrielle's questions over and over in his head.

-:-

  
It was on a Monday that Scorpius walked in on Gabrielle reading— _crying_ —over an owl. Most bars were usually closed on Mondays after huge party weekends and the three had stayed in a nice wizarding inn for a change. Albus had woken up earlier than usual in search of breakfast and Scorpius volunteered to fetch Gabrielle from her room.

"Gabrielle?" Scorpius entered the room cautiously. "Are you alright?"

Gabrielle raised her tear-stained face to look at Scorpius. Her eyes held both pain and anger. "It's from my husband," she said, indicating the parchment.

"Oh," Scorpius said, trying his best to sound sympathetic. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Scorpius sat on the edge of the bed beside Gabrielle and squeezed her shoulder lightly to show support. He offered her a small smile hoping to get her to smile back in return and perhaps lift her mood up a bit, but instead of an answering smile, there was a glint of determination in her eyes.

In one swift motion, Gabrielle got up and swung her leg to straddle Scorpius. His eyes grew wide as she settled on his lap and began to unbutton her blouse. He was shocked, but not entirely displeased with the action.

"You could help me instead," Gabrielle husked. "This is why you invited me on your trip isn't it?"

"But I..."

"Shh, it's okay," she said. "My husband, he was just like me when I met him. He screwed a lot of women he picked up from bars, sometimes more than one at a time. When we were married, I thought he'd change. But I was wrong. He just became better at hiding them. Apparently, he's been doing it all these years. Isn't it time I do the same?"

Scorpius closed his eyes and groaned inwardly. What Gabrielle had said was true. When he invited her, it was because he knew what kind of reputation she had. Of course it didn't even occur to him that that was years ago and he never imagined being on the receiving end of a revenge fuck. Stupid teenage hormones.

Gabrielle gently took Scorpius's hands and guided them under her skirt and on to her arse. The heat pooled in Scorpius's groin as he automatically massaged the firm globes, gently kneading and parting them with his hands. A whimper elicited from Gabrielle's mouth and she grabbed Scorpius by his hair and pressed his face into her breasts.

 _Oh fuck it_ , Scorpius thought before throwing caution to the wind. Besides, who could ever resist a willing veela?

As the two became lost in the sensations of revenge and conquest, neither noticed Albus standing by the half-open door. Hurt and betrayal was written clearly on his face.

-:-

  
Nobody ever mentioned the incident, but it was painfully obvious that Albus knew about it. Albus had been giving Scorpius the cold shoulder ever since that day and offering only cold politeness to Gabrielle instead of his usual half-smitten behaviour.

Scorpius on the other hand, had taken to being possessive of Gabrielle, always sitting beside her and casually draping his arm around her shoulder. He'd give Albus a shit eating grin and the other boy would only scowl darkly in return.

At first, Gabrielle thought that it was another of the boys' testosterone-fuelled competitions. All throughout their trip, the two had been trying to outdo each other in everything. Who could drink more before passing out, who could pull the most girls on the dance floor, not to mention who could hold _her_ attention the most.

By the third day, Gabrielle had had enough.

They were in a Muggle club and both Scorpius and Albus had been ignoring each other since they left the hotel. The tension between the two best friends was suffocating at best. Throwing her hands up in exasperation, Gabrielle suddenly grabbed Albus's wrists and dragged him to the back of the establishment where other couples could be seen engaging in acts of carnal pleasure.

By the time they went back to their table, Scorpius was long gone.

-:-

  
When Albus woke up the next morning, he found Scorpius sitting on his own bed on the other side of the room staring at him.

"So," Scorpius began. "Fucked her last night, did you?"

Albus ignored his best friend and got up. He went to the toilet to take a piss, not bothering to close the door behind him. When he turned back to the door, he saw Scorpius there leaning against the frame, scowling darkly at him. He knew that look. Albus had hoped that it wouldn't have to come to this, but this confrontation was inevitable. It had been brewing for days.

"Never thought you'd be the type to have a one off," Scorpius said, continuing the one sided conversation. "You weren't like that while we were in school."

Albus bristled. It was true, he'd usually get involved a little first before getting together with a girl. But he'd never go in deep enough to be in a proper relationship.

"But I liked her. I really did," Albus said defensively, although he couldn't understand why he was even trying to defend himself.

"And you just fucked her like a five-knut whore!" Scorpius snarled.

"At least I liked her," Albus yelled back. "You would fuck anything on two legs with a willing hole!"

The hurt was evident in Scorpius' eyes, but it was quickly slammed behind his well-trained Malfoy facade. "So what if I do?" The voice had turned cold and steely. "I fucked that Gryffindor you were making a move on, I fucked that Ravenclaw groupie of yours—"

Heated rage was rising from Albus as Scorpius continued on his list of conquests.

"—I fucked your cousin Victoire, I fucked Rose—"

Albus began to see red as he heard his cousins' name added to the list.

"—and I even fucked your brother!"

And that was the last straw before Albus blurted out the one secret he had promised to take to his grave.

"Well, I fucked your dad!"

Albus gasped and clasped both his hands over his mouth as the two looked at each other in horror. He hadn't meant for it to slip out, but he had always been prone to these outbursts whenever they had confrontations like this. Him and his fucking big mouth.

"Al...what...?" The heated shouting match had immediately dissipated. There was shocked bewilderment and confusion in Scorpius's eyes.

"I mean...not that I...he was the one who, you know..." The confession bubbled up involuntarily from Albus as the look of anguish became more prominent in his best friend's face. God, he'd give anything to take those words back.

" _When?_ " was the broken whisper of his friend.

"Last summer." The reply was equally quiet.

Scorpius's face scrunched up, before comprehension dawned, "Your dad…that was before… _oh god!_ " The colour drained from his face and he looked like he was about to faint.

Albus wanted to kick himself because he felt he had to say something, but knew he'd probably make things even worse. He still did anyway. "It was nothing, Scorp. I mean I didn't even know what I was doing then...and your dad—"

"Save it. I don't want to hear it."

With that, Scorpius quickly left and headed out of the room without looking back. Albus slid to the floor and buried his face in his hands.

-:-

  
Gabrielle didn't know about their confrontation that morning, but she knew something was bound to happen, what with last night's events. They didn't go to a club that night and instead stayed at the hotel's bar. The tension between the two best friends was as dense as ever, but Gabrielle just looked curiously at them, trying—and failing—to make conversation while plying them with alcohol.

After a few hours of drinking, they were now sufficiently plastered and Gabrielle kept on giggling, while Scorpius kept scowling at the alcohol that she kept on putting in front of him before downing them in big gulps. Albus had his head on the bar and would only raise his head to take a sip of his drink.

"You know, I think I know what your problem is," Gabrielle said, giggling at the two. "And I know the perfect way to fix it." She had been trying to figure out what had gone wrong with the two friends and decided to test her theory.

She led them up to her room, pushing Scorpius ahead to lead the way and Albus trailing behind, following them. Gabrielle held both their hands with a mischievous smile on her face. When they reached the room, she gently pushed Albus to sit on the bed before turning her back on him to face Scorpius.

She pulled Scorpius closer, tugging on his trousers. She then began to fumble with the buttons on his trousers, and Scorpius, getting the hint, began to unbutton her blouse while nibbling on her ear. She smiled when she felt hands reach under her skirt from behind, tracing the lines of her knickers. When she didn't protest, the strokes became bolder and the hand tugged at the clasp of her skirt to remove it completely. When her skirt pooled at her ankles, she felt Albus rise from behind her and begin to kiss her neck.

Pressed between the two boys, she turned around, this time to remove Albus's trousers. Scorpius finished removing the rest of his clothes and started to grind his naked erection against Gabrielle's back. She hummed her approval when she finally freed Albus's cock from its confines. With one hand she took Albus's shaft and reach behind with the other to grab Scorpius's.

She gently tugged them both closer before smiling mischievously and slowly sinking to the floor.

-:-

  
Albus could feel the pressure building as Gabrielle worked her wonders. The slick tongue, the warm breath, and expert hands moving back and forth between him and Scorpius. When Gabrielle tugged them both closer, Albus gasped aloud in surprise when he felt Scorpius's stiffness rubbing against his own. The erotic sensation drove him further to the brink and when Albus tried to card his hand in Gabrielle's soft hair, he found Scorpius doing the same. Albus just wanted to touch, to feel something with his mouth, with his hands.

And there was Scorpius right in front of him, wanting – _needing_ – the same thing.

Gabrielle's soft tugs dragged him closer, closer towards his best friend. And then there were hands touching him, feeling him. He reached out and did the same. He could see Scorpius's lips coming nearer and nearer. He could feel his breath. He could almost taste him.

And when the soft, slightly parted lips touched his, it was almost heaven.

He was grabbing Scorpius's jaw, his cheek, his face. And in that moment nothing else existed because here he was, desperately drowning in his best friend's kiss.

And then he was coming. Together, they were coming.

-:-

  
Scorpius woke up the next day in Gabrielle's room next to a naked Albus. Evidence of last night's drunken revelations—that he just had sex with his best friend and _enjoyed_ it—shocked his senses.

He quickly sat up and began to collect his clothes strewn on the bed and on the floor. A rustle of sheets told him that Albus had woken up, too. Neither said anything to the other. They both hastily dressed, one on either side of the bed and not daring to look at each other.

Gabrielle wasn't in the room with them. In fact, none of Gabrielle's things were in the room. They were silent when they headed down to the lobby, and there they received a note from Gabrielle with the words: _Good luck. G._

They were silent during their Portkey home. When they reached London, they nodded once to each other before Apparating home separately. They never saw each other again for a long time after that day.

One week later Albus headed to Romania to apprentice for his Uncle Charlie. Scorpius entered the Unspeakable program a month after.

-:-

  
Five years passed before the two best friends saw each other again. Ever since that summer, they had both avoided family gatherings and holidays, using every excuse they could find to wriggle out of the family obligation. Except this time, Rose wanted to introduce her fiancée to the family and insisted that everyone be there, no exceptions.

The first time they came face to face was not as awkward as they would have thought. Instead, it was distantly cold and impersonal. Polite smiles and pleasantries were exchanged. They inquired about each other's health and their current occupation. They never spoke of their families, especially their fathers, even though they had to endure being in the same room with them. The silence was stifling and both wished they had an excuse to leave.

It was in between one of the many awkward silences that Albus asked unexpectedly, "Do you remember Gabrielle?"

"Who?" Scorpius replied.

"My Aunt's sister, Gabrielle. The part veela?"

"Ah, yes. I do remember," Scorpius said, although both knew that she was someone hard to forget.

"She went home to France."

"Really?" the surprise in Scorpius's voice was genuine.

"Yeah. After all these years."

They were both silent for a while before Scorpius asked, "When?"

"When what?"

"When did she leave?"

"Oh. Just after we...um, just after that summer...when..." Albus shrugs.

"Ah."

They were both painfully aware that they were treading on dangerous waters. It still felt like that unforgettable summer morning even though five years had passed.

Albus replayed in his mind all the events that led up to that night: seeing his best friend with Gabrielle, his own encounter with her a few days later, the explosive argument they had the morning after, and finally that evening of drunken debauchery.

One beautiful woman, one drunken evening, and one unacknowledged desire for one's best friend of seven years perfectly brewed into a night of revelations and disastrous morning afters.

Albus had never allowed himself to think about that night again, throwing himself into his apprenticeship and never talking to anyone about what happened, not even with Rose. But now, with Scorpius right in front of him, he couldn't _not_ think about it.

Because really, how does one act when the line of friendship has been crossed?

But the most painful part for Albus was not knowing where he stood. Since they had never talked about it, much less acknowledged the fact that it happened in the first place, he didn't know what Scorpius thought of him now. Were they still even friends? Or were they merely acquaintances who happened to belong to the same family?.

It was too much, and Albus decided he couldn't stand being near Scorpius any longer. He began to unconsciously tap his fingers nervously against his knee, thinking of an excuse to leave. It was an Albus thing, one that he does when thinking of a white lie and it never failed to drive Scorpius crazy.

Scorpius reached out a hand and placed it on top of Albus's fidgety ones, stilling the movement.

"Hey," Scorpius said in a low voice barely above a whisper.

Albus looked up, and for the first time after five years, he gazed into Scorpius's eyes.

"You're still my best friend, right?" Scorpius asked.

Albus stared at the hand covering his for a long time. Then he flipped his hand over and held his best friend's hand in his own before giving it a squeeze.

"Of course, Scorpy."

And it was then that he knew that everything would be all right.


End file.
